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en2019 - VOA60Thu, 21 Mar 2019 14:59:22 -0400Pangea CMS – VOAS. Sudan Rebels Urge Pressure on Kiir to Fund Peace ImplementationSouth Sudan's main rebel group is calling on President Salva Kiir to provide funds to implement last year's peace agreement and is demanding that Sudan and Uganda apply pressure on Kiir to cough up the money.
The government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) signed the deal to end South Sudan's civil war on Sept. 12 in Addis Ababa.
The deputy chairman of the SPLM-IO, Henry Odwar, said the parties are far behind schedule in carrying out key parts of the agreement, such as integrating rebel forces into the national army.
He accused Kiir of not providing money for committees tasked with implementing the deal.
"We all banked [our hopes] that, you know, the money will come from our oil, and we produce oil — over 120,000 barrels per day. We find it very difficult [to believe] the government when they say they don't have money,'' Odwar said Wednesday on VOA's South Sudan in Focus.
Kiir has said his government does not have enough money to implement the peace deal.
Kiir, Pope to meet
On Friday, Kiir was headed to Vatican City for a meeting with Pope Francis. Kiir's spokesman, Ateny Wek Ateny, said the president would brief the pope on the status of the peace deal. He said the Kiir administration hoped the pope would publicly encourage more international donors to support implementation of the peace agreement.
Ateny said Pope Francis had previously appealed to South Sudan's warring parties to end to the conflict and was keenly aware of the efforts to make peace a reality in the country.
"This is a very crucial opportunity," he said. " ... [I]t will avail the president the opportunity to talk to the pope and seek the pope's influence on this, to influence donors to support, because there is not any other way South Sudan would return to normalcy without the implementation of the agreement we have." ​
​Think tank doubts
A report released this week by the International Crisis Group expressed doubt that the former warring parties would meet a May 12 deadline for creating a government of national unity.
"The accord, brokered by Sudan's Omar al-Bashir and Uganda's Yoweri Museveni, is not a finished product and requires revision, a reality that mediators are not yet ready to admit. Additional political deals are necessary on two crucial matters — unifying a national army and resolving bitter disagreements over local boundaries and administration inside South Sudan,'' the report said.
Uganda and Sudan signed as the guarantors of the peace agreement, and Odwar said the two countries should honor their pledges to monitor the deal.
"Now that we are pointing fingers at the government for not coming up with the funds, we would like Sudan, Uganda [and] the neighboring countries of the [regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development bloc] to bring pressure to bear on Salva Kiir so that he can bring money for implementing this peace," Odwar said.
Unauthorized dealings
Odwar, who is also the deputy chairman of the National Pre-Transitional Committee (NPTC), a body tasked with overseeing and coordinating the peace process, accused the government of spending money wastefully.
​South Sudan in Focus obtained copies of letters written in October and signed by Tut Gatluak Manime, NPTC chairman of a presidential adviser on security, authorizing the NPTC secretary to prepare contracts for $94.5 million to purchase 1,000 Toyota V-8 vehicles and another $42.5 million to buy of 50,000 tons of sorghum.
Last year, the NPTC also requested the governor of the Bank of South Sudan to release an estimated 9 million South Sudanese pounds to renovate a home that belonged to the late South Sudanese liberation hero John Garang.
Odwar said he saw the letter and discussed it with Kiir, who promised to investigate.
"I asked Tut, I said this is [not] going to be good for your name, neither is it going to be good for South Sudan because people will look at it that we are squandering money that would have put in good use," he said.
Odwar said the request to the bank governor was canceled but the money was allocated anyway.
VOA made several attempts to speak with Manime for comment, but was told he was in Egypt on an official tour.
The deputy rebel chief said his group was participating in the peace deal to bring change to South Sudan.
'This government, the status quo, continues and that is why we want this peace. We want the participation of the opposition to make sure that we check on the government,'' Odwar said.
Winnie Cirino contributed to this report.
https://www.voanews.com/a/s-sudan-rebels-urge-pressure-on-kiir-to-fund-peace-implementation/4831180.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/s-sudan-rebels-urge-pressure-on-kiir-to-fund-peace-implementation/4831180.htmlFri, 15 Mar 2019 17:16:12 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/s-sudan-rebels-urge-pressure-on-kiir-to-fund-peace-implementation/4831180.html#commentsSouth Sudan Rape Victims Demand Justice International aid workers who were raped in South Sudan during an attack on a hotel in Juba say the government of President Salva Kiir has ignored their appeals for compensation and damages.
The aid workers were attacked at the Terrain Hotel in July 2016 by the South Sudan army.
One of the victims, called Jane to protect her privacy, spoke Monday to VOA's South Sudan In Focus. She said the international community should put pressure on the South Sudan government to compensate the victims.
"What was very sad for us is that we discovered [the] file of the court martial, the entire file, went missing. The verdict was pronounced without this file, and when we tried to appeal for the compensation, we couldn't," she said.
Last year, a South Sudan military court sentenced 10 soldiers to prison for raping the aid workers and murdering local journalist John Gatluak in the 2016 attack. The court also ordered the government to compensate the victims.
The Terrain Hotel was awarded $2.5 million. Gatluak's family was awarded 51 cows in compensation for his death. The three rape victims and two other victims of abuse were awarded $4,000 each. An American aid worker who was beaten and shot and now has permanent spinal damage was awarded $1,000.
"We wanted to appeal because the compensation was ridiculous, and it was an offense for us," said Jane. "Without our file, we can't appeal.''
The U.S. Embassy in Juba released a statement in September 2018 welcoming the verdicts, but urged South Sudan officials to prosecute others who have committed human rights abuses during the five-year conflict.
The embassy said the United States would "continue to utilize tools, including targeted sanctions, to take action against those who attempt to sow chaos, work against peace and commit serious human rights abuses in South Sudan."
Jane said the international community must step up the pressure to allow the victims to appeal.
"It is like this incident, this terrible incident, was completely forgotten. In any case, rape cases are still on the rise in South Sudan,'' she said.
'They killed me from the inside'
Jane said she went back to South Sudan last year to testify because she wanted to be the voice for the other women who cannot face the government or are afraid to seek justice.
A group of human rights lawyers filed a lawsuit against the government of South Sudan last year for sexual violence on behalf of 30 women and girls who were allegedly raped by members of the army and the presidential guard. Antonia Mulvey, director of Legal Action Worldwide, a nonprofit network of human rights lawyers, said the South Sudan army committed "brutal" sexual violence, including sexual slavery, sexual torture, rape and gang rape against women and girls.
"They raped us. They beat us. I am still recovering. I can't work. I need continuous therapy," said Jane. "They killed me from the inside, and I have a permanent invisible scar on me. Four thousand dollars [in compensation] for these big atrocities? I [will] continue to fight. They must give us real compensation. We need to show to the world that the [rape] problem is a real crime.''
VOA requested an interview with a minister in the South Sudan presidential office, but he was unavailable.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-rape-victims-demand-justice/4813613.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-rape-victims-demand-justice/4813613.htmlMon, 04 Mar 2019 20:30:50 -0500South Sudan In Focus South Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-rape-victims-demand-justice/4813613.html#commentsCatholic Bishops Express Doubt Over South Sudan Peace Implementation The bishops of the Catholic Church in South Sudan are expressing concern about the future of South Sudan's peace agreement, signed last year.
The bishops said in a statement Thursday they welcomed the agreement as a step forward.
"However, the concrete situation on the ground demonstrates that it is not addressing the root causes of the conflict in South Sudan,'' they said.
The bishops said human rights abuses continue with impunity, including murder, rape, widespread sexual violence, looting and occupation of civilian land and property in South Sudan.
"There is no will or commitment for peace among many of our leaders, hate speech and propaganda abound, and there is a thirst for revenge among our communities,'' the bishops said.
The statement said many of the committees and commissions mandated by the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan, (R-ARCSS), have not been set up or are late in getting started.
President Salva Kiir's government, the main rebel group led by former vice president Riek Machar and most other armed groups signed the peace deal designed to end South Sudan's five-year civil war.
However, Angelina Teny, the chairperson of the strategic defense security board, a body tasked with security arrangements, said not much has been achieved.
Rebel forces were supposed to be gathered on bases before being integrated into the national army.
"That is the prerequisite for the formation of the TGONU (Transitional Government of National Unity)," she noted. But the process has yet to begin, only two months before the "transitional" period defined in the peace deal begins.
Church recommendations
South Sudanese Catholic Church leaders said one of the key drivers of the current conflict is the number of states and their boundaries.
Kiir redrew South Sudan's map five years ago, increasing the number of states.
"The consequences of not settling the controversial issue of the 32 states before the onset of the transitional period, and of not fully consulting the people on the ground, are too grave to ignored,'' the bishops said.
The church made 17 recommendations to the South Sudan government, stressing the need for an inclusive approach to the search for peace in South Sudan.
"While we thank the (regional bloc) IGAD for its efforts, we note that the government of South Sudan is a member of IGAD and that other IGAD members have their own national interests. It thus becomes difficult for IGAD to act as a truly impartial mediator," the statement said.
Official's response
South Sudanese Information Minister Michael Makuie Lueth reacted angrily to the bishops' statement.
"I am sorry and disappointed to hear such comments from a renowned religious sect," he said Thursday. "I am saying this because it is our strongest belief that the agreement addresses all the concerns of the people of South Sudan. It is fighting corruption. It is for reform. It is for democratic transfer of power, and it is for all the things for which everybody has been yearning."
The information minister is on a tour of the Bahr el Gahzal area with Kiir to drum up support for the peace agreement.
https://www.voanews.com/a/catholic-bishops-express-doubt-over-south-sudan-peace-implementation/4808037.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/catholic-bishops-express-doubt-over-south-sudan-peace-implementation/4808037.htmlThu, 28 Feb 2019 13:40:52 -0500AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/catholic-bishops-express-doubt-over-south-sudan-peace-implementation/4808037.html#commentsRebels: Government Forces Provoked Fighting in Yei River State General Thomas Cirillo Swaka, the leader of the National Salvation Front (NAS), said the international community should blame the South Sudan government for the fighting in Yei River State.
Swaka said the government's South Sudan Peoples Defense Forces initiated the violence.
"We have been warning people [since a] few weeks ago that the government is preparing its forces, moving their forces from Juba toward Rokon, toward Torit, toward Lobonok and toward Yei. They are preparing to attack us," Swaka said.
A joint statement last week from the United States, Britain and Norway, known as the Troika, said the fighting around the town of Yei represents a "flagrant breach" of a December 2017 cease-fire and the revitalized peace deal signed by South Sudan's government and several rebel groups last September.
The NAS told VOA's South Sudan in Focus that President Salva Kiir's administration provoked the fighting in Yei River State, where thousands of civilians are caught in the crossfire.
"The government is attacking us [NAS] because the other forces decided to go to Juba under the Revitalized Peace Agreement, but [the] National Salvation and other forces of the South Sudan National Democratic Alliance refused to sign the agreement because it gave everything to Salva Kiir," according to the NAS.
South Sudan's conflict, which began in December 2013, killed tens of thousands of people and displaced more than 4.5 million, with 2 million people fleeing to other countries.
'Forced to sign'
Several warring parties signed a revitalized peace agreement last September in the South Sudanese capital, Khartoum, to end the four years of fighting between the South Sudan government and various rebel groups, including the NAS.
"We are [South Sudanese leaders] forced to sign this agreement. Many people [party leaders] who signed the agreement did not sign it from their hearts. People [were] coerced to sign the agreement, and that is why we say this agreement is not for the people of South Sudan," Swaka said.
The Intergovernmental Authority on Development's (IGAD) special envoy for South Sudan, Ambassador Ismail Wais, held a meeting Monday with Swaka to discuss the timeframe for further engagements.
The special envoy said in a statement that his office wants to stop the ongoing hostilities, especially in Yei River State and other areas. Wais called upon all other parties involved in the hostilities to abide by the Permanent Cease-fire in the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS).
Witness accounts
The United Nations refugee agency says a surge of violence in South Sudan's Yei River State has displaced some 8,000 civilians and sent an estimated 5,000 people fleeing to the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Witnesses told VOA's South Sudan in Focus that soldiers killed civilians, raped women and burned entire villages — a claim VOA could not independently verify.
The spokesman of the South Sudan Peoples Defense Forces has issued several statements calling the rebels of the NAS "enemies of peace."
https://www.voanews.com/a/rebels-government-forces-provoked-fighting-in-yei-river-state/4803988.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/rebels-government-forces-provoked-fighting-in-yei-river-state/4803988.htmlMon, 25 Feb 2019 19:30:31 -0500South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/rebels-government-forces-provoked-fighting-in-yei-river-state/4803988.html#commentsSouth Sudan to Deduct from Civil Servants' Salaries — But Salaries Aren't Being PaidThe government of South Sudan says that beginning in March, it will deduct one day's salary from civil servants' paychecks each month to help pay for implementation of the peace deal aimed at ending the country's civil war.
Some observers are skeptical about how that will work, however. Most civil servants haven't been paid for months.
Garang De Mabior Garang, a senior member of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM IO), a group that signed the peace deal, says the government's announcement mocks the public's intelligence.
"As we all know, workers are not paid on time as the situation currently stands, with government workers going more than six months without salaries and many of our foreign missions facing eviction. It begs the question; what salaries does the regime intend to cut?'' Mabior asked in a statement.
Plan to last for months
South Sudan Information Minister Michael Makuei announced the salary deduction plan last week in Juba. He said the monthly deductions, due to last through June, should raise about one billion South Sudanese pounds, about $38 million.
The money would be used for the training and supply of a unified national army, among other activities.
Makuei said the government made the decision because the international community has not come through with promised funds. He called on citizens to "own" the peace agreement by contributing to its implementation.
But public servants told VOA's South Sudan in Focus that they have doubts about the plan. Some declined to be identified for reasons of safety or protecting their jobs.
One man, who wanted to be identified only as Losik, said, "It is a good idea but where is the salary? People are staying for months without salary and the civil servants [are owed] by the government … But also our salary itself is not enough, so the government should look for other alternatives," he said.
Susan Pita, a civil servant in the capital, Juba, also objected to the government taking part of a salary that is already small — when it is paid.
"If we deduct this money, what will be remaining for them? Because even those particular workers who are receiving salaries, even this salary is not enough. If we are going down to market, this salary is nothing," Pita told VOA.
Another public servant, Solomon, said he has no problem contributing money to support efforts to restore peace in the country — but worries that any money deducted will end up in politicians' pockets.
"It should not be a means of making other people's pockets swell; it should really go to what it is intended to. This is a general fear that everybody fears," he said. "Whether used in the right or wrong way, I am ready to contribute, it is a good decision," he said.
In support of deductions
Civil servant John Donito welcomes the deduction but hopes the money will actually be used to implement the deal.
"The idea is not bad, but it shouldn't be only civil servants; other people should also be included like the politicians and also the traders in the market," Donito told South Sudan in Focus.
Makuiei said the government will approach people in the private sector for contributions as well, adding the government needs about 44 billion South Sudanese pounds to implement the revitalized peace agreement signed last year.
South Sudan recently resumed oil production, which is expected to bring in billions of dollars to the government over the next few years.
Awow Daniel Chuang, the oil ministry's director-general, told the Associated Press in August last year that, "The goal of resuming oil production in Unity State is to help increase South Sudan's total output of 130,000 barrels per day to almost 300,000, which could bring in about $5 billion over the next five years."
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-to-deduct-from-civil-servants-salaries----but-salaries-aren-t-being-paid/4792212.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-to-deduct-from-civil-servants-salaries----but-salaries-aren-t-being-paid/4792212.htmlMon, 18 Feb 2019 14:50:23 -0500South Sudan In Focus EconomyAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (Winnie Cirino, John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-to-deduct-from-civil-servants-salaries----but-salaries-aren-t-being-paid/4792212.html#commentsKenya's Leader Vows to Hunt Down Terrorists After Deadly AttackKenya's president on Wednesday vowed to track down terrorists who staged a deadly assault the day before on a hotel-and-office complex in an upscale suburb of Nairobi.
President Uhuru Kenyatta said all attackers had been "eliminated" and warned his government was launching an aggressive manhunt for all those involved. Police said at least 21 people had been killed at the capital's Dusit D2 complex, where surveillance video showed at least four gunmen walking through the parking lot as the siege began in midafternoon.
WATCH: Kenyan President: Attack, Siege on Nairobi Hotel Is Over
"I convened and chaired our meeting of our national security council," Kenyatta said in a nationally televised address. "I want to say this: We will seek out every person that was involved in the funding, planning and execution of this heinous act. We will pursue relentlessly wherever they will be, until they are held to account.''
The Islamist extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, which began with an explosion outside a bank and a suicide bombing in the hotel lobby.
Previous attacks
Authorities have not confirmed the group's claim. However, al-Shabab has been linked to previous attacks in Kenya, including the 2013 attack on Nairobi's Westgate Mall, which killed 67, and a 2015 attack at Garissa University College, which killed 148.
An official with the Kenyan Red Cross told reporters that 18 people had been injured and roughly 700 evacuated from the Dusit complex by security forces.
The dead included two Somalis, a British man and an American.
The American killed was identified by family members as Jason Spindler, who worked in Nairobi as chief executive officer of I-DEV International, a business strategy and investment firm. His father, Joseph, told the Associated Press that his son frequently ate at the hotel cafe, where he was shot.
A graduate of New York University's law school and of the University of Texas-Austin, Spindler had worked in finance but joined the Peace Corps in Peru after the 9/11 attacks in 2001. He would have turned 41 next week.
"It is with a heavy heart that I have to report that my brother, Jason Spindler, passed away this morning during a terror attack in Nairobi, Kenya. Jason was a survivor of 9/11 and a fighter. I am sure he gave them hell!" Jonathan Spindler said in a Facebook post.
Two of the other victims, Abdalla Sheikh Mohamed and Feisal Ahmed Rashid Dahir, were also having lunch when they were killed on the terrace of a restaurant in the complex.
Both men had worked on the Somalia Stability Fund, a project to bring peace and prosperity to Somalia through various community initiatives, their employer said.
Dahir, 31, was born in Nairobi and married last year, his father, Ahmed-Rashid Haji Dahir, told VOA's Somali service. He said his son's wife was seven months pregnant.
The elder Dahir went to the mortuary at nearby Nairobi University after another son phoned him with the bad news. "I was still hoping that I will find my son alive," the father said, "but late in the night they brought in eight bodies, including my son and his colleague, Abdalla."
'A normal lad'
Abdalla Mohamed was 27. On his Twitter account, he described himself as "just a normal lad from Kenya."
Mohamed's uncle, Yasin Jama Ismail, told VOA Somali the young man was helping his siblings with school fees.
Ismail said he could not understand the alleged al-Shabab attackers' motivation.
"The ones who brought this pain to me are carrying our name, Islam. I am also a Muslim," he said. "The question I'm asking: Why are they killing human beings?"
In his address, Kenyatta said security forces were taking steps to prevent further attacks. "Multiple security efforts are under way to detect, deter and disrupt and defeat any terrorist operatives or groups," Kenyatta said. "We are also on highest alert and shall remain so. I assure every Kenyan and our foreign visitors that you are safe in Kenya."
Opposition leader Raila Odinga called for Kenya's cohesion, saying that "divisions are what terrorists thrive on."
"All indications are that as a nation, despite persisting challenges in regard to securing our homeland, we are learning and getting wiser and better with every unfortunate attack," Odinga said. He said the nation's objective must continue to be keeping "these forces of evil out of our borders and weeding them out of our midst.''
VOA Somali service's Harun Maruf contributed to this report from Washington.
https://www.voanews.com/a/kenyan-leaders-vow-to-hunt-down-terrorists-after-attack/4745470.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/kenyan-leaders-vow-to-hunt-down-terrorists-after-attack/4745470.htmlWed, 16 Jan 2019 10:56:58 -0500AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (Mohammed Yusuf, John Tanza)South Sudan Army Accused of 'Brutal' Sexual Violence A group of human rights lawyers has filed a lawsuit against the government of South Sudan for sexual violence on behalf of 30 women and girls who were allegedly raped by members of the army and the presidential guard.
Antonia Mulvey, director of Legal Action Worldwide, a nonprofit network of human rights lawyers, said the South Sudan army committed "brutal" sexual violence, including sexual slavery, sexual torture, rape and gang rape against women and girls.
Mulvey says the complaint was lodged Thursday in Geneva at the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
"They [CEDAW] will review the complaint and a copy will be sent to the government of South Sudan for comment," Mulvey said.
Scale of sexual violence
According to the LAW statement, the victims include a 12-year-old girl who witnessed the rape of two sisters and a neighbor after being raped herself.
Other allegations:
* Scovi, 27 years old and a mother of four, was gang raped by five government soldiers.
* Mary, 30 years old, was gang raped by four government soldiers in front of her children. After recovering, she fled with her children and was again gang raped by another group of soldiers, while the men and children in the group were made to watch.
* Gloria, 24 years old, was gang raped by government soldiers in front of her two sons, aged five and two. Her husband later left her, saying she was infected with HIV.
LAW works in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia and predominantly focuses on addressing sexual violence through legal intervention. In Bangladesh, LAW is co-representing 400 Rohingya women and girls in their victims' submission before the ICC.
"At this time, we can't say this [South Sudan] case will go ICC. However, what we want to do by lodging this complaint to the U.N. committee is to remind the international community of the brutal sexual violence taking place on a daily level against tens of thousands of South Sudanese women and girls," Mulvey said.
Government reaction
In response to the claim, presidential spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny said the LAW group wants to destabilize South Sudan.
"I think this group has a hidden agenda, given that the whole world is talking about this [September 12] peace agreement signed in Khartoum and Addis Ababa. There is a positive talk about the implementation of the peace agreement and this group (LAW) wants to put South Sudan back to polarization."
Mulvey wasn't surprised by the government's reaction.
"The standard response, particularly to [accusations] of sexual violence, is to deny that it occurred in the first place," Mulvey said.
Doctors Without Borders reported the attacks last week. The medical aid group said it treated 125 women and girls who were raped, beaten and brutalized in South Sudan's Rubkona County between November 19-29.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-army-accused-of-brutal-sexual-violence/4690043.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-army-accused-of-brutal-sexual-violence/4690043.htmlThu, 06 Dec 2018 17:54:23 -0500AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-army-accused-of-brutal-sexual-violence/4690043.html#commentsSudanese-American Elected to US Public OfficeThe number of Sudanese-Americans holding elected public office in the United States has doubled – there are now two.
Mohamed Seifeldein won a city council seat on November 6 in Alexandria, Virginia, a suburb of the capital, Washington. He follows in the footsteps of Mazahir Salih, who was elected to a city council seat in Iowa City, Iowa in 2017.
Seifeldein, who prefers to be called “Mo,” came to the U.S. about 20 years ago. He was born in Sudan and grew up there during the civil war which culminated in South Sudan’s independence.
“I came here due to that situation, seeking a better opportunity and security and was fortunate enough to land here in the D.C. metropolitan area and I’ve been here since,” Seifeldein told VOA's South Sudan in Focus in an interview Tuesday.
Seifeldein says that when he came to the U.S., he didn’t speak a word of English, and it took him years of study and practice to learn the language and culture.
Fast forward two decades, and Seifeldein is not only a newly-elected Alexandria council member but a successful attorney who founded a law firm, Seifeldein and Associates.
He says it’s no secret that it takes a lot of money to run for public office, something he didn’t have.
Seifeldein says he raised the least amount of money of all the city council candidates in the primary, $9,800 to be exact, but still won.
“We had that struggle, we had no name recognition, and we also had the challenges of being a newcomer, and immigrant as well, but thanks to the Alexandria community, and a very organized, grassroots campaign, which mostly included foreigners, Sudanese, and other Africans as well,” Seifeldein told VOA.
Seifeldein says he wants to make sure immigrants have a voice in Alexandria.
“We’re talking about education for all, health care and just making sure the city is safe for them and that they have a voice,” Seifeldein said.
https://www.voanews.com/a/immigrant-only-2nd-sudanese-american-elected-to-us-public-office/4661462.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/immigrant-only-2nd-sudanese-american-elected-to-us-public-office/4661462.htmlFri, 16 Nov 2018 09:57:34 -0500US PoliticsUSAAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus US Politicswebdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/immigrant-only-2nd-sudanese-american-elected-to-us-public-office/4661462.html#commentsRebel Group Claims South Sudan Ceasefire Has Been ViolatedRebels of the Federal Democratic Party (FDP) are accusing forces loyal to Riek Machar’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM IO) of attacking FDP forces in Kotkea near Nasir town in Upper Nile State.
Spokesman Changkouth Bichiock Reth for the umbrella group of opposition parties known as South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), said FDP commanders Major General Riek Gach Gatluak and Brigadier Ochan Nyuot were captured by opposition forces during the fight over the control of Kotkea.
SPLM IO reaction
SPLM IO Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee Stephen Par told VOA’s South Sudan In Focus that rebels of the FDP have no military posts in Upper Nile.
‘’What is happening in Upper Nile, I don’t think the party [FDP] of Gabriel Changson has forces in Nasir. We are not aware of this,’’ Par said.
However, he admitted his group arrested one person in Nasir for what he called "suspicious activities.”
Reth says the attack by SPLM IO and the arrest of FDP senior military officer Major General Jany Kaway Yoakhor a few weeks is ‘’a flagrant breach of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement signed in December 2017 and a violation of the permanent ceasefire agreed to in Khartoum in June 2018.’’
Looming attacks
Suba Samuel Manase, the spokesman of the rebel National Salvation (NAS), released a statement Saturday accusing the SPLM IO of mobilizing its forces to attack NAS forces in Yei River state.
Manase alleges that NAS intelligence confirmed reports of two groups of SPLM/A –IO forces moving from the village of Panyume in Morobo County to Kajo-Keji, Lanya, and Loka to attack NAS forces stationed in this area.
‘’This information is credible because we have forces on the ground and we monitor the movement of the SPLM IO, and for that matter the information is, indeed, credible.’’ Manase told VOA.
Reth said urged the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the U.S, Norway and the United Kingdom to put pressure on SPLM/A-IO to respect the September 12 peace agreement, release the captured FDP officers, and withdraw from Kotkea.
VOA could not independently verify the accusations by the three rebel groups.
Cease-Fire Monitors
The Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), a body formed by IGAD to monitoring cease-fire violations, has not issued any statement on the latest reports.
Chris Trott, Britain's special representative for Sudan and South Sudan told VOA last month that the parties involved in the conflict in South Sudan have a chance to show their commitment to peace by implementing the revitalized agreement.
Just days after the signing of the agreement, reports of fighting had surfaced in several parts of South Sudan, according to Jean-Pierre Lacroix, U.N. undersecretary-general for peacekeeping operations.
In an interview with VOA in September, Angelina Teny, a senior member of the rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), blamed government forces for allegedly attacking rebel strongholds in Central Equatoria and the former Unity state.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ceasefire/4623371.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ceasefire/4623371.htmlSun, 21 Oct 2018 23:14:28 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ceasefire/4623371.html#commentsSouth Sudanese Women Want Political Quota RespectedSouth Sudanese women leaders are calling on the president to give 35 percent of executive appointments to women, as agreed to in the recently revitalized peace deal.
On Tuesday, President Salva Kiir appointed 10 people to a committee tasked with starting the process to create South Sudan's envisioned transitional government. Only one of the 10 are women.
Mary Ayen Majok, a member of the transition legislative assembly, told VOA Wednesday that she is unhappy the women's quota wasn't met.
"The 35 [percent] affirmative action is not implemented," Majok said. ‘’For us, honestly we feel bad about it because it means that the parties are not faithful to what they agreed upon.’’
Regina Joseph Kaba represents a faction of the Former Sudan People’s Liberation Movement Political Detainees (FDS), one of the parties that signed the peace deal in Addis Ababa. She says gender balance is a continuous battle and added that the composition the NPTC committee has not followed the terms of the Addis deal.
‘’They violated the women percentage. We are supposed to have at least two women on the [NPTC] committee,’’ Kaba said.
The deal in Addis not only set aside 35 percent of executive appointments for women, it also includes a broad commitment by parties to give due consideration to ethnic diversity, gender and regional representation.
Emily Koiti represented the young South Sudanese at the just concluded peace negotiations. She said the parties to the deal can address the root cause of the conflict in South Sudan if they are honest in its implementation.
‘’We want to ensure that there are regional, ethnic and generational representation in all the bodies that will be established [to implement the deal].’’ Koiti stressed.
Cease-fire violations
Chris Trott, Britain's special representative for Sudan and South Sudan told VOA last week that the parties involved in the conflict in South Sudan have a chance to show their commitment to peace by implementing the revitalized agreement signed on September 12.
Just days after the signing of the agreement, reports of fighting have surfaced in several parts of South Sudan, according to Jean-Pierre Lacroix, U.N. undersecretary-general for peacekeeping operations.
Angelina Teny, a senior member of the rebels of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), blamed government forces to allegedly attacking rebel strongholds in Central Equatoria and the former Unity state.
‘’We have have raised this with the guarantors [of the peace deal]... we have raised it with the president.’’ said Teny. She said the government is fighting to install county commissioners in areas that are under rebel control.
Lam Tungwar, state minister of information in Liech state, formerly part of Unity State, said fighters belonging to the main rebel SPLM-IO force loyal to former vice president Riek Machar had attacked government positions in a small village in Koch County this week.
The Cease-Fire Transitional Security Arrangement Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), a body monitoring cease-fire violations told VOA in an email message that it is "currently investigating alleged breaches of the ceasefire in the Yei area. As this investigation is ongoing it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.’’
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-women-want-political-quota-respected/4589583.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-women-want-political-quota-respected/4589583.htmlThu, 27 Sep 2018 11:40:19 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-women-want-political-quota-respected/4589583.html#commentsSouth Sudanese Surgeon Wins Prestigious Nansen AwardA South Sudanese surgeon has been named the winner of a prestigious U.N. award for assisting refugees.
Evan Atar Adaha received the UNHCR 2018 Nansen Refugee Award for his 20 years of providing medical services to people forced to flee conflict and persecution in Sudan and South Sudan.
Adaha, 52, is based in Bunj, Maban county, in north-eastern South Sudan, where he runs the only functional hospital, serving 144,000 refugees from Sudan’s Blue Nile State and 53,000 people comprising Maban county's population.
UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch told VOA that Adaha’s hospital is surrounded by an active conflict zone. He said the doctor works under very difficult and dangerous conditions providing medical services to a desperate population.
“The only line of defense he has is his reputation and his humanitarian work. Luckily, so far, his work has been respected by all sides. His clinic is open for all sides, whoever needs his assistance,” he said.
According to the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said Adaha and his medical team carry out an average of 58 operations per week in what U.N. “with limited supplies and equipment.”
‘’There is no provision for general anesthesia, meaning doctors work with ketamine injections and spinal epidurals," UNHCR said.
The only X-ray machine is broken, the only surgical theater is lit by a single light, and electricity is provided by generators that often break down. The hospital is often crowded with patients and wards extend into the open air.
‘A shining example’
South Sudan's civil war, now in its fifth year, has killed tens of thousands and displaced more than four million people.
“Yet, even in the midst of tragedy, acts of heroism and service to others have emerged. Dr. Atar’s [Adaha’s] work through decades of civil war and conflict is a shining example of profound humanity and selflessness," said U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi in a statement.
“Often risking his own safety, his dedication to serving victims of war and conflict has been extraordinary and deserves global attention and acknowledgement," he said.
Originally from Torit, in South Sudan, Adaha earned a scholarship to study medicine in Khartoum, Sudan, and afterwards practiced in Egypt.
He returned home in 1997 to establish his first hospital from scratch in Kurmuk town in Sudan’s Blue Nile state.
Increased fighting between Sudan government and the rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, Northern sector (SPLM North) forced Adaha to flee Kurmuk in 2011. He moved with his staff and equipment to Bunj in Upper Nile state where 300,000 Sudanese refugees have temporary homes.
UNHCR’s Nansen Refugee Award honors extraordinary service to the forcibly displaced. Recent winners include Sister Angelique Namaika from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zannah Mustapha, a lawyer and mediator from Borno state in northeastern Nigeria, and the Hellenic Rescue service and Efi Lafsoudi from Pikpa village on the Greek island of Lesbos.
The actual 2018 award ceremony will be held October 1 in Geneva, Switzerland, featuring a keynote address delivered by UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and actor Cate Blanchett.
The Nansen award is named after Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Laureate Fridtjof Nansen. It consists of medal and a $150,000 prize.
Lisa Schlein contributed to this report from Geneva.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-surgeon-wins-prestigious-nansen-award/4586533.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-surgeon-wins-prestigious-nansen-award/4586533.htmlTue, 25 Sep 2018 12:56:29 -0400AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus Immigrationwebdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudanese-surgeon-wins-prestigious-nansen-award/4586533.html#commentsRebel Leader Machar Declines Offer to Visit Juba, Fears for His SafetySouth Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar turned down an invitation Saturday from President Salva Kiir to visit the South Sudanese capital Juba.
Machar, the leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement In Opposition (SPLM IO), told Kiir in a meeting in Khartoum that the environment in South Sudan is not conducive for a visit by a rebel delegation.
"What is the security? I was concerned about that. Truly, if we are going to implement the peace agreement, there is that need for people moving to Juba, outside the areas of [rebel and government control]," Machar said.
"In our phone conversation, I had appealed to you to release the prisoners. First, prisoners of war. Second, political prisoners and detainees. I hope your excellency [President Kiir] has taken action because that builds confidence and trust among people [South Sudanese] when such an action is taken," he added.
Kiir, leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), said his group had released all prisoners of war in their custody by December.
​According to the terms of the revitalized peace agreement, the signatories to the deal are supposed to submit names of their representatives who will be part of pre-transitional institutions, such as the revitalized Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, a body charged with monitoring the peace agreement, by Sept. 26.
President Kiir said his government is keen on implementing the Sept. 12 revitalized peace agreement. He said he is ready to work with Machar to start a new chapter in South Sudan.
"We have to chat among[st] ourselves to nominate members of all the communities that are supposed to be formed [to implement the agreement]," Kiir said.
South Sudan army and rebels of the SPLM IO clashed in Yei River state three weeks ago right after signing the peace deal in Addis Ababa. Machar insisted that the a cease-fire agreement has been violated.
"What is important is that there is calm, so there is respect of the permanent cease-fire. Because without the respect of the permanent cease-fire, we will be deceiving ourselves that we are implementing an agreement when it is being violated, " he said.
Colonel Lam Paul Gabriel, Machar’s deputy military spokesman, issued a statement Saturday accusing the South Sudan army of attacking rebel positions in Yei River state. VOA could not independently verify his claims.
Chris Trott, the U.K. special representative for Sudan and South Sudan, told VOA last week the parties involved in the conflict in South Sudan have a chance to show their commitment to peace by implementing the revitalized agreement signed on Sept. 12.
The British diplomat said his government was interested in seeing an end to violence and unhindered access to humanitarian agencies operating in South Sudan. He said that if the parties failed to honor their commitments as stipulated in the peace agreement, sanctions would remain an option.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir organized a peace award ceremony in Khartoum over the weekend to reward Kiir and Machar for signing the revitalized peace deal.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-peace-deal/4584339.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-peace-deal/4584339.htmlSun, 23 Sep 2018 22:39:54 -0400AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-peace-deal/4584339.html#commentsUK Envoy Calls for Transparency in S. SudanChris Trott, the U.K. special representative for Sudan and South Sudan, says the parties involved in the conflict in South Sudan have a chance to show their commitment to peace by implementing the revitalized agreement signed a week ago.
In an interview Friday with VOA's South Sudan in Focus, the British diplomat said his government hoped all parties would live up to their commitments.
"There have been ample opportunities for the parties to adhere to the cessation of hostilities agreement [signed in December 2017] and we have continually called on the parties stop the fighting, to allow humanitarian access, to give the space to civil society and to the media,'' he said.
The U.S., Britain and Norway released a joint statement last week expressing concerns about the latest South Sudan peace deal.
Support for implementation
The special envoy said South Sudan civil society and other parties to the agreement needed the support of the international community to implement the revitalized peace deal.
Trott said he was in Washington to try to drum up support for the agreement. "I am here with my Norwegian counterpart and we are talking about how the international community can work together to ensure that this time the agreement is implemented," he said.
Collapsed deal
A previous peace deal signed in 2015 fell apart after deadly clashes broke out between government forces and rebels in July 2016.
Riek Machar, leader of the main rebel group, the SPLM-IO, and other insurgent factions signed the new agreement this month with the Juba government after assurances that a power-sharing accord would be honored. The deal, mediated by Sudan, reinstates Machar to his former role as vice president.
Trott said the latest agreement would succeed if the focus was on good governance.
"The way that we make this agreement sustainable is by ensuring that there is transparency around the way the Transitional [Government of National Unity] operates [and] transparency around the spending of the revenue of the government of South Sudan, which needs to be in support of the ordinary people of South Sudan," he said.
​Government needs money
South Sudan Minister of Information Michael Makuei told VOA that his government was committed to implementing the revitalized peace deal and urged the international community to provide financial support.
"If they want the agreement implemented, they are supposed to join us in the implementation so that we all work together," Makuei said, adding that "implementation means money. It means funding."
The United Nations estimates that South Sudan's civil war, which started in December 2013, has killed at least 50,000 people, displaced 2 million and hindered the country's progress since it gained independence seven years ago.
Targeted sanctions
The special envoy said his government was interested in seeing an end to violence and unhindered access to humanitarian agencies operating in South Sudan. He said that if the parties failed to honor their commitments as stipulated in the peace agreement, sanctions would remain an option.
"Yes, we will continue to look at the issue of the sanctions," Trott said. "Yes, we will continue to say to the region that if you really want this peace agreement to stick, you need to demonstrate. Our concern has been, all the way through the negotiations process, the sincerity with which the parties are addressing the conflict.''
https://www.voanews.com/a/uk-envoy-calls-for-transparency-in-s-sudan/4582294.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/uk-envoy-calls-for-transparency-in-s-sudan/4582294.htmlFri, 21 Sep 2018 19:01:48 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/uk-envoy-calls-for-transparency-in-s-sudan/4582294.html#commentsS. Sudan Ambassador Hopes to Repair Relations with USIn an interview Thursday with VOA's South Sudan in Focus, Phillip Jada Natana, South Sudan's new ambassador to the United States, said he wants to repair the damaged relationship between Washington and Juba.
The South Sudanese envoy said that Tibor P. Nagy, U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, has expressed a willingness to work with the Kiir administration.
"He is someone who has been following keenly the situation in South Sudan, and he said he was really willing to open a new page and work with me as a representative of South Sudan here in Washington,'' Natana said.
U.S. relations
Relations between South Sudan and the United States have been strained in recent years. In September 2017, Washington imposed unilateral targeted sanctions and an arms embargo on the Central African country.
"In the interest of the people of South Sudan, we would really want the United States government to support the peace agreement because war has been costly,'' Natana told South Sudan in Focus.
The ambassador said the price for peace in his country is affordable, adding that the U.S. can play an important role to support the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement signed last week by President Salva Kiir, rebel leader Riek Machar, and other members of the opposition groups.
​Support peace deal
Thomas Hushek, U.S. ambassador to South Sudan, said Washington will not continue to fund peace agreements that are violated over and over by participants in the South Sudanese civil war.
Hushek told VOA that the government and rebels, who signed the revitalized peace deal last week, must show a real commitment to ending violence, allowing unfettered access to humanitarian workers and releasing all political prisoners.
The U.S., Britain and Norway released a joint statement last week expressing concerns about the latest South Sudan peace deal.
"We don't expect that this agreement is going to act like a magic stick, that once you strike it,then it is going to be all peaceful,'' Natana said.
He said his country has many spoilers who are against the signing of the revitalized peace agreement.
Cease-fire violations
The Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), which was established to monitor South Sudan's cease-fire agreement, said it is still investigating reports of clashes between the government and SPLA-IO (Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition) forces in Yei River state.
In a Twitter post last week, CTSAMM said it received reports of violations of the cease-fire agreement in Yei River state and reminded the warring parties of their commitment to refrain from any form of hostilities.
Natana said the international and regional bodies should hold violators of the cease-fire accountable.
"The best thing to look at now is the enforcement mechanism that should be put in place,'' he said. "I think if the region, especially the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), is keen that this agreement should hold, then I think they should speed up with deploying the monitors on the ground so that we hold people accountable who violate this agreement."
Natana is the third South Sudanese diplomat to head the embassy in Washington. He previously served as South Sudan's ambassador to Eritrea and South Africa.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ambassador-hopes-to-repair-damaged-relations-/4580610.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ambassador-hopes-to-repair-damaged-relations-/4580610.htmlThu, 20 Sep 2018 20:05:43 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-ambassador-hopes-to-repair-damaged-relations-/4580610.html#comments1 Dead in Inter-Communal Fighting at South Sudan UN CampOne person was killed and three others critically wounded just outside South Sudan's capital in the latest fighting between internally displaced persons at a United Nations-run Protection of Civilians (POC) site.
Displaced people said fighting that between two communities from the former Unity State that initially erupted a week ago, resumed Wednesday at the camp.
Camp resident Reat Kuajin told VOA's South Sudan in Focus that the fighting was a continuation of an argument that started nine days ago at POC 3.
"It was only fighting between two boys and it has led to communal fighting. So for these nine days there has been mediation between the two groups to try make sure that they come together. Unfortunately early [Wednesday] fighting has resumed," said Kuajin.
Tek Chan Nhial, IDP and deputy camp chairman of POC 3, confirmed one person was killed in the clashes and three others were listed in critical condition after gunshots were fired in the camp. He said the fighters also used stones, spears, and grenades.
Chan said calm returned Wednesday at the POC camp, but tensions remain high. Chan called on the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to quickly intervene.
More than 36,000 IDPs are camping at the POC site in Juba. All fled their homes due to fighting over the past five years.
In an email to South Sudan in Focus, UNMISS spokesperson Francesca Mold called on the groups to end the violence so aid workers can safely deliver food, water and other essential services to vulnerable civilians living inside the POCcamp.
The statement said UNMISS peacekeepers, soldiers and police have intensified their presence in and around the site to protect civilians and separate the fighting groups.
Mold said UNMISS will continue to engage closely with camp and community leaders to help the communities negotiate an amicable solution.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-un-camp-fighting/4541307.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-un-camp-fighting/4541307.htmlThu, 23 Aug 2018 14:07:38 -0400AfricaAfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (Waakhe Simon Wudu, John Tanza)S. Sudan Opposition Urges Focus on Power-Sharing DealSome South Sudan opposition parties that signed a power-sharing deal in Khartoum say they did so to give peace a chance even though they disagree with some of the agreement’s provisions.
However, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, an African trade bloc that brokered the peace process, issued a press release Tuesday in which it said Sudanese mediators, including President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, would continue facilitating the talks until a revitalized peace agreement for South Sudan was finally signed.
According to the IGAD statement, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta will send a team of experts to support the continuation of the peace process in Khartoum. There had been reports the talks would possibly be moved to another location.
Group not happy with agreement
Bangasi Joseph Bakosoro, leader of the South Sudan National Movement for Change, said the South Sudan Opposition Alliance and the Former Detainees group initially did not want to sign the deal on Sunday because some of their demands had not been met in the Khartoum agreement, such as reverting to the original 10 states, down from the current 32 states.
Bakosoro said his group agreed to sign the deal only after Sudanese Foreign Minister Al-Dirdiri Mohammed Ahmed informed the group, in writing, that as a chief mediator, he would reopen discussions on the outstanding issues in the next round of talks.
“Most of us did not like to sign the agreement. That is a given fact. But ... we are waiting to start debate on the outstanding issues,” Bakosoro told VOA's South Sudan in Focus.
No date has been announced as to when discussions on the outstanding issues will resume.
The South Sudan Opposition Alliance and the Former Detainees group have raised concerns about a provision in the deal that provides for the creation of an Independent Boundaries Commission to determine the number of states in South Sudan.
Bakasoro said his group, which is part of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance, agreed to sign the deal only with the caveat that such issues would be resolved in a timely fashion.
“That made us sign the agreement, and we are hoping that in the near future we are going to finalize the outstanding issues and complete the High Level Revitalization Forum [as the peace talks are known], and then we wait for the final signing,” Bakasoro told VOA.
'Other opposition parties'
Peter Mayen, head of the People's Liberal Party, part of a group referred to as the “other opposition parties,” said his group agreed to sign the deal with the same understanding. He said the success or failure of the agreement would depend on whether it was fully implemented.
“South Sudanese really are in dire need of peace irrespective of the positions of the parties, irrespective of outstanding issues. People want the guns to go silent, people want opportunities to rebuild the economy and people want to impact in a genuine democratic transformation,” Mayen told South Sudan in Focus.
Mayen said once a final deal was signed, all parties must work to provide basic services to the South Sudanese people.
The armed opposition group known as the National Salvation Front (NAS), led by a former deputy army chief of staff, General Thomas Cirillo, declined to sign the agreement. He told South Sudan in Focus on Tuesday that the NAS had not authorized any person to sign the deal on its behalf.
NAS disputed signature
Major General Julius Tabuley Daniel, who declared himself the interim chairman of NAS, signed the deal, but Cirillo said Tabuley was not a legitimate representative of NAS.
“You have a few individuals who are not satisfied with [what] NAS is doing in terms of this peace process, because, for them, they just want to go to Juba. Maybe they are tired and for their own reasons they decided to leave NAS,” Cirilolo told South Sudan in Focus.
He said three or four individuals have been in contact with security authorities in Juba “to cause problems within NAS” and traveled to Khartoum to take part in the talks. “They represent themselves,” he said, not the NAS.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-opposition-parties-urge-issues-with-power-sharing-deal-be-resolved/4518272.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-opposition-parties-urge-issues-with-power-sharing-deal-be-resolved/4518272.htmlTue, 07 Aug 2018 21:28:46 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (Michael Atit, John Tanza)South Sudan's Kiir, Machar to Meet in Addis AbabaSouth Sudan's president and rebel leader will meet June 20 in Addis Ababa for face-to-face talks, part of an effort by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to mediate a peace deal between the two.
"The Movement welcomes this invitation ... it will go a long way in building confidence in the peace process," Machar's spokesman said in an emailed statement.
There has been no immediate reaction from South Sudan's government or from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).
But Kiir spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny called the invitation "significant."
Mabior Garang, spokesman for the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO), confirmed to VOA's "South Sudan in Focus" program that Machar will travel from South Africa to Ethiopia for the meeting.
Garang said that the talks' agenda is not yet known, but that the two leaders are expected to address some of the contentious issues blocking the road to peace.
"It's a big step for Riek Machar, the leader of the main armed opposition, to meet President Salva Kiir face-to-face," said Garang. "We see it as a big step forward because he has been in detention for going on two years without charges, and this was hampering the peace process."
Garang said it is a "major breakthrough" that Kiir and Machar have agreed to meet and hopefully "come to some kind of understanding."
The Addis Ababa meeting is to be mediated by IGAD, the East African regional bloc that has led several rounds of failed peace talks.
The SPLM-IO has said the formula for negotiations is flawed because "President Kiir and his political military allies — some of them are party to the conflict and mediators at the same time who can bulldoze processes," Garang said.
This would be the first meeting for Kiir and Machar, who once was Kiir's deputy, since a peace agreement between the government and Machar's rebel group collapsed in August 2016.
Tens of thousands of people have died in the fighting that broke out in December 2013, when troops loyal to Machar fought with government forces in Juba. More than 2 million people have fled the country and another 2 million people are living as internally displaced persons (IDPs) in U.N.-run camps in South Sudan.
Both sides have been accused by the United Nations and human rights groups of committing atrocities against civilians.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-s-kiir-machar-to-meet-in-addis-ababa/4437629.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-s-kiir-machar-to-meet-in-addis-ababa/4437629.htmlWed, 13 Jun 2018 16:28:44 -0400South Sudan In Focus South Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-s-kiir-machar-to-meet-in-addis-ababa/4437629.html#commentsSouth Sudan's Former Strongman Forms a Rebel GroupThe former head of the South Sudan army, the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), has formed a new rebel group known as the South Sudan United Front (SSUF).
General Paul Malong Awan released a statement Monday outlining the objectives of his new group, which he said will fight "systemic corruption, stop ongoing carnage, steer the country [South Sudan] toward democracy, justice, equality and freedom."
Awan also pledged to respect the cessation of hostilities agreement signed in December last year by the various warring parties and he urged the regional bloc, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to allow his new group to be part of the high-level revitalization forum meeting scheduled April 26 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
A spokesman of the South Sudan United Front, Sunday De John, told VOA's "South Sudan in Focus" program Monday from Nairobi, Kenya, that the new group will work toward achieving peace in South Sudan.
"The real change that would be impacted on the lives of people [in South Sudan] through good governance and the rule of law. The current state of South Sudan is not commensurate with the principles on which South Sudanese went to the bush to [fight] for 21 years.'' John said.
South Sudan Information Minister and government spokesman Michael Makuei declined to comment Monday. He scheduled an interview with VOA on Tuesday.
Sanctions
The European Union imposed sanctions in February on Awan and three current South Sudanese officials implicated in human rights violations and obstructions of their country's peace process.
John said the sanctions imposed on Awan by the U.S. Treasury Department and the European Union are not justified. He said the former chief of staff was carrying out orders from President Salva Kiir, who is the commander in chief of the South Sudan army.
Awan had been a longtime governor of Northern Bahr el Ghazal before he was appointed chief of general staff of the Sudan People's Liberation Army by Kiir. His appointment followed mass resignations by senior generals who claimed the SPLA was involved in ethnic cleansing and war crimes.
Awan was fired by Kiir in May 2017, and attempted to return to his hometown of Aweil. However, his convoy was intercepted at Yirol. He was persuaded by the elders in Yirol to return to Juba to talk with Kiir, and was placed under house arrest there.
The former army chief was released in November 2017 to seek medical treatment in Kenya after one of his wives and community leaders pleaded for his release.
Rebel groups
Awan's statement expressed interest in joining various rebel groups that have been meeting at the Ethiopia capital in an effort to end the conflict in South Sudan.
"It is not an opportunistic move. It is the comprehensive peace that is desired by South Sudanese,'' John said.
It is not immediately clear how many people have joined Awan's new rebel group. John said the size and the structure of the forces of South Sudan United Front will remain a secret.
The conflict has devastated the country, causing a humanitarian, political and economic crisis. More than 1.5 million people are on the brink of famine — twice as many as the same time last year. More than 4 million people, or a third of South Sudan's population, have fled their homes, causing Africa's largest refugee crisis.
Close to a dozen of armed and unarmed opposition groups have rebelled against the Kiir administration.
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-former-strongman-forms-rebel-group/4339303.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/south-sudan-former-strongman-forms-rebel-group/4339303.htmlMon, 09 Apr 2018 16:45:37 -0400South Sudan In Focus South Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)Spokesman for South Sudan's VP Quits, Blames Government for Country's Suffering The press secretary for South Sudan's Vice President James Wani Igga has resigned, saying he cannot serve a government that is subjecting its people to suffering.
David Mayen Dengdit told VOA's South Sudan in Focus that he left his position a week ago because of what he called bad government policies.
"I would be a hypocrite if I pretended to be serving two masters: A government that is sending its people away, that is subjecting its people to different forms of sufferings, and the same people who are victims of our government. I could not do both at the same time," said Dengdit, who is now in Denver, Colorado.
The government of President Salva Kiir has been fighting rebel groups since December 2013. The civil war has pushed an estimated 4 million South Sudanese from their homes and left at least 6 million in need of humanitarian assistance.
Office: Dengdit requested time off
Dengdit is a longtime associate of Igga. Dengdit began working for Igga in 2008, when the vice president was the speaker of the national legislative assembly in Juba.
Kalisto Lado, the deputy press secretary in the vice president's office, told VOA that Dengdit has not submitted a resignation letter.
"We were surprised to hear him talking to VOA that he has tendered his resignation," he said. "What we know is that he took some time off to visit his family in Kampala [Uganda] and his mother and sister in the U.S. He also requested some time off to seek medical attention.
"He was a good press secretary. ... We don't know the motives behind his resignation. We wish he had first consulted us before resigning."
War crime accusations
Dengdit said the government's counterinsurgency policy in parts of eastern Equatoria and Yei River states has pushed thousands of people from their ancestral lands.
Dengdit said he traveled recently to Uganda on a bus and witnessed ghost villages along the once-busy Juba-Nimule highway, which connects South Sudan with east African countries.
"I can attest to you that if a population census is conducted tomorrow, the Madi tribe would not be counted because they have all been pushed to refugee camps in Uganda," he said.
Kiir visited the South Sudanese border town of Nimule last month and apologized to residents whose villages were destroyed during a government campaign to fight rebels of the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Opposition in the area.
"I am sorry to see Lowa Pari in the shape I have seen this morning," Kiir told a small crowd of people who turned up at a trading center during his visit. "This was once a place where the population used to be active. Now it is vandalized; there is nothing there and I am sorry for that."
Dengdit said, "A skewed counterinsurgency strategy by the Kiir administration is responsible for the sufferings of civilians in South Sudan, for the war crimes that have been committed against the civilians in greater Equatoria, in greater Upper Nile."
He said the government practices a policy of blanket condemnation of civilians in villages across South Sudan.
"This is happening in Lainya [county]; this is happening to [the] Kakwa in Yei [state] and Morobo [county in Yei]. This is happening to [the] Kuku in Kajokeji [county]," the former press secretary said.
Pay issue
Dengdit also said he has not been paid since November.
When he was last paid, the money wasn't enough to cover basic costs, Dengdit said. "When your salary comes, it is not enough to provide you with water for 30 days. A barrel of water is now 200 South Sudanese pounds," (about $1.50), he said.
Kiir has acknowledged on several occasions that his government has no money to pay its soldiers and civil servants.
In March, Kiir told his new finance minister to devise ways to revitalize the collapsed country's economy.
Dengdit, however, maintained the country has money from oil revenues. "We are still exporting 150,000 barrels [of crude oil] per day even today. Where is that money going?"
He said South Sudan's capital, Juba, is crowded with women, men and street children begging from well-wishers.
"There is a total meltdown, there is a complete collapse of the economy, [and] people cannot make ends meet," Dengdit said.
https://www.voanews.com/a/spokesman-south-sudan-vp-quits-blames-government-suffering/4335837.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/spokesman-south-sudan-vp-quits-blames-government-suffering/4335837.htmlFri, 06 Apr 2018 14:34:46 -0400South Sudan In Focus AfricaSouth Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/spokesman-south-sudan-vp-quits-blames-government-suffering/4335837.html#commentsIGAD Sets New Conditions for South Sudan Rebel Leader The family of Riek Machar, South Sudan's former first vice president and leader of Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition, is disappointed in a decision made by the regional bloc of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) calling for a conditional "lifting of house arrest."
Machar's wife, Angelina Teny, responded to IGAD's decision Monday.
"If you read it carefully, actually, there is no lifting of any house arrest. Because what they said is very clear that they will transfer him from where he is now, which is South Africa, to another location that is not in the region, and that would not be in any proximity with South Sudan,'' she said.
The IGAD statement said it would release Machar as soon as possible if he would renounce violence, not obstruct the peace process and relocate to any country "outside the region not neighboring South Sudan.''
The statement said that IGAD ministers would decide on a possible location for Machar.
Teny said the ministers of the regional bloc are not being fair to her husband.
"They made another condition to say that he must not obstruct the peace process. How can he be obstructing the peace process or the revitalization process when he already appointed a delegation that has been engaging constructively in the two last rounds or sessions of talks?'' Teny said.
The regional bloc called upon the Transitional Government of National Unity and the nine opposition groups not to squander the opportunity for ending the suffering of the people of South Sudan.
But Teny, who is a senior opposition member, said IGAD was pushing her group into a tight corner.
"It is going to implicate the [peace] process, because SPLM-IO is being pushed to negotiate from a position where its leader is in captivity,'' Teny said.
IGAD did not set new dates for the resumption of the peace talks. Its special envoy for South Sudan Ambassador Ismail Wais, will consult various South Sudanese stakeholders to reconcile the position of the parties on power sharing and permanent security arrangements before the next talks.
Forced to flee
Machar is a de facto prisoner in a farmhouse outside of Johannesburg. He is isolated from his friends and family, and has been frozen out of South Sudan's peace process and the future of his country.
Machar, who has long dominated South Sudanese politics, was an instrumental figure in South Sudan's fight for independence from Sudan, and has served as vice president twice in the very short history of the world's newest nation. It became independent in 2011.
Critics say although he was an architect of South Sudan's creation, he was instrumental in its downfall. Among other factors, tensions between him and President Salva Kiir sparked the civil war that began in 2013, leaving the country devastated in its wake.
A new outbreak of fighting in July 2016 destroyed a tentative peace deal that had restored Machar to his government post, and forced him to flee the country. With limited options, Machar ended up in South Africa.
https://www.voanews.com/a/igad-new-conditions-south-sudan-rebel-leader/4317620.html
https://www.voanews.com/a/igad-new-conditions-south-sudan-rebel-leader/4317620.htmlMon, 26 Mar 2018 21:15:22 -0400South Sudan In Focus South Sudan In Focus webdesk@voanews.com (John Tanza)https://www.voanews.com/a/igad-new-conditions-south-sudan-rebel-leader/4317620.html#comments